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(08-17-2015, 06:25 AM)49er Wrote: After my computer died three weeks ago, I wasn't sure whether I was going to stay with Windows or give the Mac a try. Because I had heard how wonderful Windows 10 was, that was the direction I was leaning.

I tried both windows 10 and the mac several times in different stores so I wouldn't make an impulsive decision. I finally decided that even though I knew I would have a learning curve with the Mac, I decided I was really tired of windows as the interface seemed so clunky compared to the Mac in which things seemed simple and elegant to me at the same time.

But I certainly respect the decision of folks who stay with Windows and don't intend to turn into a Mac zealot. Good luck to everyone with their systems no matter what they have.

49er

O'Reilly Press has a good book on going from Windows to Mac. It is part of their missing manuals series. Apple used to have a good article on This Is How I did it on Windows, Howe do I do it on the Mac but they have taken it off the search results.

My main computer is an almost 8 year old Mac running the latest OS. My laptop is Windows 10 so I am used to both worlds.

Quote:O'Reilly Press has a good book on going from Windows to Mac. It is part of their missing manuals series. Apple used to have a good article on This Is How I did it on Windows, Howe do I do it on the Mac but they have taken it off the search results.

My main computer is an almost 8 year old Mac running the latest OS. My laptop is Windows 10 so I am used to both worlds.

Microsoft loves their new telemetry gathering in Windows 10 so much, they decided to roll it out to Windows 7 and 8 users.

Beware of these "updates" and block them. If you made the mistake of installing them, get rid of them:

|Copied from extremetech.com|

KB 3068708: This update introduces the Diagnostics and Telemetry tracking service to existing devices. By applying this service, you can add benefits from the latest version of Windows to systems that have not yet upgraded. The update also supports applications that are subscribed to Visual Studio Application Insights.

KB 3068708 is listed as collecting diagnostics about functional issues on systems that take part in the Customer Experience Improvement Program. Determining whether or not you are a member of the CEIP, however, is less than obvious. The KB also notes that “Most programs make CEIP options available on the Help menu, although for some products, you might have to check settings, options, or preferences menus.” This is a recommended Windows update.

KB 3022345: This update has been superseded by KB 3068708, but previously provided the same telemetry-tracking services. It’s not clear how the two updates differ, but if you want to remove all traces of telemetry tracking, you’ll want to remove this update as well.

KB 3075249: This update adds telemetry points to the User Account Control (UAC) feature to collect information on elevations that come from low integrity levels. What this appears to mean is that MS wants more information about the kinds of applications that trigger UAC in the first place, presumably because it wants to know what they do and why they need that access. This update is classified as Optional.

KB 3080149: This update is described in identical language to the first two. “This package updates the Diagnostics and Telemetry tracking service to existing devices. This service provides benefits from the latest version of Windows to systems that have not yet upgraded. The update also supports applications that are subscribed to Visual Studio Application Insights.” It is provided as an Optional update, even though the first was classified a “Recommended” update.

But wait! there's more...

Hard-coded phoning home

One of the assumptions made by various privacy advocates and journalists, including me, is that third-party utilities would be able to shut down the tracking Microsoft deployed in Windows 10. To some degree, that’s already happened, but there are certain new “features” of Windows 10 that can’t be blocked by any OS-level tweaks, including the hosts file. The updates listed above connect to vortex-win.data.microsoft.com and settings-win.data.microsoft.com. These addresses are hard-coded to bypass the hosts file and cannot be prevented from connecting. It’s been reported that software firewalls aren’t sufficient to block them, though this is unclear. (See update above).
Telemetry2

It’s not clear if setting this flag in Windows 7 still disables all telemetry with the new patches installed.

The only way to block some of these connections is if your router has a firewall you can configure and if that firewall allows you to block HTTPS connections instead of simply passing them through. Some users have reported that they can block these connections, but plenty of other devices can’t, at least not completely. It’s still possible to reduce the amount of information flowing to Microsoft, but disabling it completely seems to be impossible unless you build a software router or replace your current hardware with a dedicated box.

Windows 7’s GPEdit.msc contains a setting that allows users to disable all application telemetry, and another setting that can shut off user participation in the Consumer Experience Improvement Program. Whether these options continue to function after the latest patches isn’t known. Users who do not wish to send Microsoft their own telemetry should uninstall the updates and tell Windows Update to hide them from now on.

I run IPCop firewall and these sites are blocked.

Using FlashAir W-03 SD card in machine. Access through wifi with FlashPAP or Sleep Master utilities.

I wanted to learn Binary so I enrolled in Binary 101. I seemed to have missed the first four courses.

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(09-10-2015, 07:21 PM)storywizard Wrote: any idea if Apple is better for us as users??

Storywizard

My Mac is my primary machine, but I also have a Windoze laptop. Personally, I prefer the Mac. My Mac will be 8 in December and I can run 99% of what is out there. MacWorld has a good series of articles on transitioning from Windoze to Mac.

In my former life I supported Mac and Windoze and found the Mac has its own idiosyncrasies. Usually, the first way to fix an issue is to reboot.

Granted, you will pay more for a Mac, however, they last a lot longer. One drawback is if it needs work, you need to take it in (other than changing the memory on the old 24 in and new 27 inch desktop units.

Useful Links

INFORMATION ON APNEA BOARD FORUMS OR ON APNEABOARD.COM SHOULD NOT BE CONSIDERED AS MEDICAL ADVICE. ALWAYS SEEK THE ADVICE OF A PHYSICIAN BEFORE SEEKING TREATMENT FOR MEDICAL CONDITIONS, INCLUDING SLEEP APNEA. INFORMATION POSTED ON THE APNEA BOARD WEB SITE AND FORUMS ARE PERSONAL OPINION ONLY AND NOT NECESSARILY A STATEMENT OF FACT.